Prime Minister's Office
English rendering of PM’s address on laying of Foundation Stone for Poorvanchal Expressway in Azamgarh
Governor of Uttar Pradesh Shriman Ram Naik Ji; the glorious, high-spirited and hard-working chief minister of the state Shriman Yogi Aditya Nath Ji; my colleague who always has a smile on his face, the deputy chief minister Shriman Keshav Prasad Maurya Ji; Industries development minister Shriman Satish Mahana Ji; minister in the state government, brother Shri Dara Singh Ji; and my colleague in the parliament and state president of Bhartiya Janta Party Shriman Mahendra Nath Pandey Ji; my colleague in parliament sister Neelam Sonkar Ji; brother MLA Shri Arun Ji and my dear brothers and sisters present here in large numbers,
I bow down to the land of Azamgarh that is the land of sages and wise-men and has also given several stalwarts in the field of literature. Today, a beginning has been made to start a new chapter of development of Uttar Pradesh. A new series of development will take place in eastern India, in a big part of eastern Uttar Pradesh. You people are going to get the development in the form of Ganga Poorvanchal Express-Way and we have got the opportunity to lay the foundation stone for this thing.
Friends,
This is the decision of the people of Uttar Pradesh, it is your decision to work in this direction that Uttar Pradesh should be developed in such a manner that: it should develop fast and those areas which have been backward should be brought to the level of others by putting more energy and we are just implementing this thing as servants. Four years ago, Uttar Pradesh gave the responsibility to Bhartiya Janta Party to work in the central government with an overwhelming support and elected me from Kashi and last years you people made a historic decision that will double the speed of development. The way the work has been performed in the last one year in the leadership of Yogi Adityanath Ji that is unprecedented. You people are very well aware that what the situation of big criminals is. The government of Bhartiya Janta Party has made an effort to build an excellent environment for development. By checking the crimes, by checking the corruption, Yogi Ji has made it easier to bring the biggest investments in the state and made it easier for the smallest traders to do the business. Whether it is a farmer or an youth or be it women or persecuted or exploited or be it a deprived community, the government of Yogi Ji is dedicated in serving you people with a commitment for development of all. The image of Uttar Pradesh which was formed during the last ten years has begun to change. Now people’s money is being spent in the welfare of people. Every single penny is being spent with honesty. This new work culture will take Uttar Pradesh to heights of development.
Brothers and sisters,
Poorvanchal Express Way is going to provide new heights to the hopes and aspirations of the entire UP, particularly to eastern Uttar Pradesh. More than Rs. 23,000 crore will be spent on Poorvanchal Express Way. The face of all the cities, towns and villages located on the 340 kilometers long highway between Lucknow and Gazipur is going to change. It’s not only this, the distance between Delhi to Gazipur will also be shortened by several hours after construction of this road. And those several hours long traffic jams, the wastage of petrol and diesel and that damage to environment, all these things will become the things of past after construction of this expressway. And the most important thing is that it will save the time of people of this area and this is very important. Whether it is farmer of this area or someone engaged in animal husbandry or be they are my weaver brothers or be it a potter, this expressway is going to provide a new direction, new speed to the lives of everyone. Food-grains, fruits and vegetables, and milk produced by the farmer brothers and sisters of Poorvanchal will reach to the markets of Delhi in a short time after construction of this road. In a way, it will develop as an industrial corridor. New industries will develop around the entire stretch of this expressway. I see the potential for establishment of a lot of training institutes like educational and training institutes, industrial training institutes, and medical institutes in future. In addition to this, one more thing that will develop here too is tourism.
Our important mythological places that are located in this area, the places related to the Lord Ram, the places related to our sages and ascetics, now these places will get more visibility. This will provide new avenues of employment to the youths of this region besides their traditional occupations.
Friends,
I have also been informed that Gorakpur will also be linked to an expressway in future. In addition to this, the Bhartiya Janta Party government in the state has decided to build a similar expressway in Bundelkhand. All these efforts will take the level of connectivity in Uttar Pradesh to a new height. Connectivity is the basis of development in the 21st century. As connectivity improves in a region an entire ecosystem develops itself. A constant effort is being made to raise the living standards of farmers, poor people, and deprived, exploited and backward communities and to create new employment avenues and make it easier to do business by improving connectivity.
Brothers and sisters,
When your intention is to perform and objective is development then the speed of work goes up automatically, then the files don’t have to wait for someone’s recommendation to move forward. And this is the reason because of which the length of national highway network in Uttar Pradesh has doubled in the last four years. It means the length of national highways, the number of national highways which were there before 2014 have now doubled. Just imagine, the amount of work which was done since independence, BJP government has demonstrated this thing by doing the same amount of work in just four years. Now the speed of doing work has further improved after formation of Yogi Ji’s government in the state. Not only the highways, the work on waterways and airways is also being done at a rapid pace in Uttar Pradesh. The ships ferrying in Ganga Ji from Banaras to Haldia will boost the development of this entire region. In addition to this, special emphasis is being laid on air connectivity and I have always dreamed of that a person wearing a slipper should also afford air travel. The government is taking forward Udan scheme at a rapid pace by keeping this thing in mind. Small cities are connected with air service under this scheme. Twelve airports of Uttar Padesh are also being developed under this scheme. Besides this, the work on international airports in Kushi Nagar and Jevar has also been expedited for this purpose.
Brothers and sisters,
Be it Modi or Yogi, we have just you people as our family. Your dreams are our dreams. We are related with the hopes and aspirations of poor and middle class people. That is why when the fares under Udan schemes were to be decided then it was ensured that no one needs to spend more than Rs. 2,500 for a journey of up to one hour. Today, it is the result of same policy that the number of air travelers was more than the number of people travelled in an AC coaches of trains during the last year.
Friends,
The policies of the previous governments were such that this part of the country, our eastern India, our Uttar Pradesh, our eastern Uttar Pradesh has always been lagging behind in terms of development. I believe that the eastern India has the capacity to speed up the pace of development of the country by several times and eastern Uttar Pradesh also has the same capability. When the youth of this area can prove themselves in other states then if we get the right kind of opportunity here then they can certainly transform the entire region.
Friends,
Unless the sun of development rises in the East the glow of a New India will remain dim. And that is why several projects related to roads, railways, airport have been approved for Poorvanchal, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Assam and North East in the last four years. In a way, this eastern part of the country is being developed as a new corridor of development. The work of opening new medical colleges, AIIMs and restarting of the closed urea plants in the area has been going on.
Friends,
All these things will encourage the balanced development of this region. We have been moving ahead without any discrimination by following the formula of Sabka Sath-Sabka Vikas. Every person should get the equal opportunity of development, everyone should be developed in a balanced manner. Our government has been working to make the villages the focal point of development. The work to link every major village body of the country with the optical fiber network has been going on at a rapid speed. More than one lakh Panchayats have already been connected with it so far. Nearly three lakh common service centers have been performing the great work of empowering the villages and villagers and making their lives easier. In addition to this, more than 1.5 lakh wellness centres are being set up in the villages for taking care of people’s health.
Friends,
More than one crore houses have been constructed for the poor people of villages under Prime Minister Housing Scheme and by completing earlier housing schemes.
The work to link every village of the country under Prime Minister Rural Road Schemes is also in its last phase.
Brothers and sisters,
This dream of self-rule of villages was the dream of revered Mahatma Gandhi, it was the dream of Baba Saheb Ambedkar and Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay and Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia. All these new facilities are for everyone, they are for the welfare of all. However, some political parties that talk about parity and equality, they have only played politics in the name of Baba Saheb and Ram Manohar Lohia Ji.
Friends,
I would like to know it from the people of Azamgarh that the kind of development had taken place in the area during the previous governments do you think that it had benefitted you? Whether Azamgarh should not have been developed much more? Whether those people who have been trusted by the people of Azamgarh and the people of this area, whether those people have betrayed your trust or not? Truth is that these political parties have never done anything for benefit of public and poor people and they have only benefitted their families and themselves. They sought votes of poor people, votes of dalits and backward classes and they did nothing except filling their own coffers after forming government on their names. Now you people see it yourself those people who never wanted to see each other now these people, whenever they meet in the morning or evening, they together just criticize Modi, Modi, Modi.
Brothers and sisters,
All of those who are on bail, all those people, all family based political parties, you look at all these families, these are family based political parties, all these parties have come together to stop your development for their self-interest. They want to prevent your empowerment. They know that if the poor people, farmers, dalits and backwards if they become empowered then their shops will be shut forever.
Brothers and sisters,
All these political parties have also been exposed because of their stand on Triple Talaq. While on the one hand the central government has been trying to make the lives of women easier, on the other, all these political parties have been collectively making the lives of women difficult particularly the lives of Muslim sisters and daughters difficult.
Millions and millions of Muslim sisters and daughters have always demanded that Triple Talaq must be stopped and there is a ban on the practice of Triple Talaq even in Islamic countries of the world. I have read this thing in the newspapers that the President of Congress party, Shriman Namdar  had said that Congress is party of Muslims. The issue has been discussed for the last two day and I am not surprised because when it was the government of Manmohan Ji, the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh himself had said that Muslims had the first right on the natural resources of the country. He had said this thing. However, I want to ask this thing to the prestigious name holder of the Congress party that if you feel that Congress is party of Muslims then so be it. However, please tell us that the party of Muslims is only party for Muslim men or whether it is the party of Muslim women too? Whether there is any place for the dignity and respect of Muslim women? Whether there is any place of pride for Muslim women? Whether there is any place for rights of Muslim women? They stall the passage of the law in parliament and create pandemonium and they don’t allow it to function.
I would like to tell these family based political parties, those parties who have been working day and night to dislodge Modi that there is still time of four-five days before the start of parliament session. You please visit those Muslim women who are victim of Talaq, you please come back after meeting those mothers and sisters who have been victim of Halala and then you give your point of view in the parliament.
Brothers and sisters,
These political parties of 21st century who have been still living in the 18th century they can create slogans for removal of Modi but they can’t do justice with the country. Brothers and sisters, when BJP government tried to give rights to Muslim daughters and sisters by bringing a law in the parliament then they are creating hurdles in this thing. They want Triple Talaq to continue like this and lives of Muslim sisters and daughters remain in hell. But I assure you that I would make every effort to reason with these political parties, I would try to bring them around by convincing them for protecting the rights of our sisters and daughters so that our Muslim daughters who have been facing difficulties because of Triple Talaq they should be saved from it.
Brothers and sisters,
There is a need to be careful with this kind of political parties. These people who are driven by self-interest alone and they are not concerned for the welfare of all. They can’t think about the welfare of the country. On the one hand the government in the centre, BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, for them the country is the family, the country is above everything else, 1.25 billion Indians are our family. Our government has been working constantly for making the lives of people easier be it farmers, poor people, deprived or exploited people or backwards. Nearly five crore bank accounts of poor people have been opened in Uttar Pradesh under Jan-Dhan scheme. Free gas cylinders have been provided to more than 80 lakh women to set them free from the smoke of wood based stoves. Safety net has been provided to more than 1.6 crore poor people in the state only for a premium of one rupee per month and 90 paise per day. Now the government is getting ready to provide free treatment of up to Rs. 5 lakh in a year for every poor family under the Ayushman scheme. Recently the government has fulfilled its promise made to the farmers. The government has effected a big increase in the minimum support price of 14 crops in Kharif season. Be it paddy or corn or millet or maze or Tur Dal or Urad or Moong Dal or be it sunflower, Soya been or oilseeds, their minimum support prices have been increased by Rs. 200 to 1800. In the case of some crops it is certain to give 100% profit, just double the price.
Friends,
Our government has formulating the schemes, taking the decisions by taking into the account the requirements of the country and its citizens. Those decisions that were stuck for years, those decisions that remained only in files during the previous governments, the NDA government led by BJP has been taking the decisions even on those stuck projects. This government is completely sensitive towards your every need. The weaver brothers and sisters of this area who have been engaged in the trade of Banarasi Sari they should thoroughly understand this thing that the previous government had forgotten them whereas this government has been doing the work from providing modern machines to providing loans and developing new markets for them. A trade facilitation centre has already become functional in Banaras last year. This centre has become a new hope for all of you weavers and artisans. Handicraft and handmade carpets have been encouraged through the centre and at the same time Yogi Ji’s government has also formulated a new policy for textile sector. In order to publicize, in order to provide market to whatever is being produced here the work is also being done on the one-district-one-product scheme.
Brothers and sisters,
The art of making pottery from black soil in the region is unique in itself. I would like to congratulate Yogi Ji and his team for his recent decision to constitute Mud Arts Board that is commendable. It will not only create lakhs of new employment opportunities but one form of art will also get a new lease of life.
Friends,
This kind of decisions are taken when the public interest and the interest of country is being given utmost importance, when the work is done to achieve the objective of making the lives of poor people easier and convenient by taking into account the problems faced by them. Otherwise, schemes are formulated only on papers and foundation stones are being laid only in speeches, you people are very well aware about these things, you people have experienced this thing. Now Uttar Pradesh and the country have moved ahead of that kind of work culture.
I once again congratulate and convey my best wishes to all the brothers and sisters of Poorvanchal, to all the brothers and sisters of UP for the start of work on this modern expressway. You people are present here in such large numbers in this hot weather, this galaxy of people in itself is evidence of your love. You people have come here to shower your blessings, I express my sincere gratitude to all of you.